Cottrell Likes His Chances With 49ers

Published 7:00 pm, Tuesday, February 4, 2003

AP Sports Writer

Ted Cottrell believes the San Francisco 49ers are giving him a fair chance to be their next head coach _ and that's more than he can say about other NFL teams.

Cottrell, the New York Jets' defensive coordinator, toured the San Francisco Bay area and the 49ers' training complex on Wednesday before speaking with 49ers owner John York and dining with several members of the front office.

The visit was the second interview with the 49ers for Cottrell, a respected veteran assistant coach whose quest to run his own team has taken him to many interviews _ some of which he felt were over before they began.

"If a team talks to you, that doesn't mean it is an interview," Cottrell said Wednesday night in the lobby of the 49ers' training complex. "I've had seven talk to me, and four of them have been what I call legitimate interviews, and three of them have been bullcrap sessions. Excuse my language about that, but that is how I feel about it.

"Three of those teams had just talked to me, and there was no way I was a serious candidate and they had (no) thought in their mind of hiring me. I was just in there to probably fill in a time slot and make them look good. Four have been legitimate and three have been not worth a darn."

Cottrell, who is black, is one of three current candidates for the job that has been vacant since York fired Steve Mariucci on Jan. 15. San Francisco defensive coordinator Jim Mora will get his second interview on Thursday, and Chicago defensive coordinator Greg Blache will visit the Bay area this weekend.

The issue of minority hiring in the NFL was placed under a spotlight again this week when Detroit hired Mariucci apparently without interviewing any minority candidates. According to many reports, five minority candidates turned down interview requests with the Lions because Mariucci's hiring appeared inevitable.

"I think (the 49ers) are going to choose the best coach, regardless of race," Cottrell said. "You could be white, you could be purple. It doesn't matter. The best coach is going to get this job, who they feel can fit into this organization."

In addition to the three NFL finalists, general manager Terry Donahue also will consider college head coaches in the next several days, now that the deadline for national letters of intent has passed.

Cottrell, who also has been Buffalo's defensive coordinator, was among the first candidates contacted by Donahue nearly two weeks ago.

The 49ers like his reputation for disciplined football _ and they also like his willingness to work with the three offensive assistant coaches, including offensive coordinator Greg Knapp, who are still under contract to the 49ers. Though the new coach will have the freedom to assemble his own staff, Cottrell said he liked the options already available in Santa Clara.

"Yeah, I'm very comfortable," Cottrell said. "One of the coaches that's here is (quarterbacks coach) Ted Tollner. Ted was with me in Buffalo. Coach (Pat) Morris, coach Knapp _ those guys are well known as a good offensive line coach and a good offensive coordinator.

"One thing I've always admired, because it's tough to stop, is the West Coast offense. It's an offense that's been successful. I always said if I became a head coach, that's the offense I would strongly look at and try to implement."

Cottrell signed a two-year contract extension with the Jets last Friday that will pay him nearly $600,000 over the next two years, but he still is keenly interested in the 49ers' job. Tampa Bay defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin and Philadelphia coordinators Jim Johnson and Brad Childress all dropped out of consideration after getting contract extensions from their teams.

Cottrell will return home on Thursday morning, but he feels confident that his talks with York and Donahue went well. He also knows that the 49ers are being extremely deliberate in their search, which has been criticized by quarterback Jeff Garcia and others.

"I know the 49ers have a process they're going through, and I'm one of the many guys they've narrowed it down to," Cottrell said. "I'm just thankful I survived the (first cut), and I'm in pretty good shape."